The show's 18-49 ratings have averaged a 1.9 -- around 50% above the 1.2 number he had been earning. All this has pushed competitor "Late Show with David Letterman" well down into second place, to around a 0.7 to a 0.9 rating among 18-49 viewers.

Letterman had been regularly beating O'Brien before the late-night controversy started.

Executives say pricing for late-night talk-show programming, including "The Tonight Show," has ranged from $40,000 to $45,000 for a 30-second commercial.